Sepulcrum - Lamentation of Immolated Souls

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You’re not committing a mortal sin when trying to play an Old School Metal genre, anyone you want. The problem is: as these genres are already eaten by time and dust, you have to breathe some new life in them, and it can become a trial for many people. Unfortunately, there are cases when to play Old School Metal seems to be an ideological feature, as happens in Chile. And SEPULCRUM is the case of a band that needs to mature, as “Lamentation of Immolated Souls”, their first album, depicts. The band trails the ways of Old School Death Metal, especially of the sets of music of the years between 1986 and 1991, the age between the First and Second Wave of Death Metal, having resemblances with European schools (especially of UK and Sweden). But their musical work, besides good in some moments (as the guitars arrangements on some moments on “Orbital Teratoma”), the ‘Old School Metal theology’ (let’s put in such way, once such way of thinking seems sacred to many people) speaks louder to inhibit their own musical personality.

It’s not so bad, but their musical potential is enough to make things in a better and personal way. The album sonority is another point damaged by the ‘Old School Metal Theology’. Benjamin Barrantes did what he could on the mixing and mastering, but the own band used sets of tunes and recorded things to try to emulate what already was done in the past, as someone can bring back the same impact of albums recorded on Morrisound Studio or Sunlight Studios. Once heard, a new thing must come, so do it, because such sonority is unbearable today, even for Old School Death Metal acts.

The band is only four years old, so one can excuse their flaws, and as mentioned, they have potential to do a very good work, as shown on some ideas and moments of “Orbital Teratoma”, “Lamentation of Immolated Souls”, “Legion’s Mandate”, “Arousing the Putrid Flesh” (some Hardcore elements that are natural to Death Metal create some hooking moments on this one), “Caustic Inhalation” and “Sick Delusion” (pay attention to some technical parts of bass guitar). But as this theological way of thinking of how playing Metal (‘old school is true’ or something like that) permeates the album, and for it, they show that their music needs maturing as soon as they can!

SEPULCRUM will have appeal for some Old School Metal fans, but honestly: they’ll hear “Lamentation of Immolated Souls” once or twice, and then leave it aside. But I honestly hope that these guys can evolve and I close my mouth with their next release.

Songwriting: 7
Musicianship: 6
Memorability: 7
Production: 4